What Did the 2025-26 Academic Year Look Like at John Leggott College?

Year 1 students at John Leggott College finished on Thursday 9th July 2026, bringing the 2025-26 academic year to a close. It was a year that started with a new campus opening, ended with accountancy placements and Oxford alumni news, and packed a significant amount in between.

This is a look back at the year as it happened.

How did the 2025-26 academic year begin at JLC?

The year opened in September 2025 with JLC welcoming both returning students and a new cohort joining the college for the first time. The college's welcome message to new students set the tone for the year: access to strong teaching, modern facilities, and a wider programme of enrichment and progression support built around where students want to go next.

September 2025 also marked the opening of John Leggott Humber, a new post-16 centre at Oasis Academy Immingham, extending JLC's reach across the Humber region and giving local students access to sixth form education closer to home.

What national recognition did JLC receive during the year?

It was a year of national recognition for John Leggott College across three separate awards.

The JLC Turing Team was named a Bronze Winner at the Pearson National Teaching Awards 2025, in the FE Team of the Year category. Out of entries from educational settings across the UK, the Turing Team was recognised for their commitment and their impact on students and the wider college community. The award was celebrated on National Thank a Teacher Day in June.

At the Education Resources Awards, Deputy Principal Claire Haller was named the winner of the Leadership Excellence Award for her work developing the Women in Leadership initiative at JLC and across the wider region. The award recognises leadership that creates genuine change, and Claire's initiative, which brought together female leaders from education and industry for structured mentorship, peer collaboration, and open conversation about career barriers, was judged to be doing exactly that on a regional scale.

In the same awards, the Elective Home Education Hub, developed in partnership with North Lincolnshire Council, was named a finalist, just three months after the Hub's official launch. Being recognised at a national level at such an early stage in the Hub's life reflects both the strength of the partnership behind it and the speed at which it has made a difference to home-educated families in North Lincolnshire.

What did the JLC Careers Fair bring to students in 2025?

The Annual Careers Fair brought together universities, apprenticeship providers, and employers on campus, giving students direct access to information about what comes next after sixth form.

Russell Group universities including the University of Sheffield and the University of Nottingham attended alongside the University of Lincoln, the University of Hull, and creative specialists Falmouth University and BIMM University. Employers and apprenticeship providers filled out the programme, covering routes into employment, degree apprenticeships, and professional training.

The Careers Fair sits within JLC's broader careers programme, designed to ensure students leave college with a clear picture of their options whether that means university, an apprenticeship, or moving directly into employment.

What trips and placements did JLC students take part in this year?

Several year groups left the Scunthorpe campus for experiences that directly supported their studies and applications.

Sports students took part in a fully funded work placement in Italy, putting their coaching skills into practice in a professional international setting, the kind of evidenced, overseas experience that strengthens a personal statement and develops professional independence in a way that classroom time alone cannot.

Eight future medics from the Aspire MDV programme visited Scunthorpe Hospital for a taster day with the Hull York Medical School, working through problem-based learning in a clinical environment. For students applying to Medicine, this kind of hands-on hospital experience is not optional enrichment: it is something admissions tutors expect applicants to be able to discuss in detail at interview.

Year 1 A Level Mathematics students visited the University of Lincoln on 30 June 2026 for a day that included a university lecture on the Lagrange multiplier method, presentations on mathematics careers and graduate pathways, a meeting with an active mathematics researcher, and dedicated preparation sessions for the TMUA (Test of Mathematics for University Admission). The visit gave students who are yet to finalise their UCAS choices a realistic picture of what degree-level mathematics involves.

Which secondary schools brought Year 10 students to JLC this summer?

The final weeks of the summer term saw JLC host several secondary schools for Year 10 Taster Days, with students from across the region coming on campus to explore post-16 options before they choose their courses.

This year JLC welcomed Year 10 students from local secondary schools and from across North Lincolnshire for taster days on campus: Brumby Outwood Academy, Foxhills Ouwood Academy, Frederick Gough School, St Bede's Catholic Voluntary Academy, Winterton Community Academy, St Lawrence Academy, and Melior Community Academy.

St Bede's students arrived on 2 July 2026 and rotated through six career pathway sessions, including a forensic investigation exercise for the Social Research, Psychology and Criminology pathway, clinical simulation for the Healthcare pathway, and practical STEM activity in the college's workshop spaces.

XP School Year 10 students visited on 3 July 2026, with Applied Science teachers Damien and Gareth running a session in JLC's mock hospital ward that drew particularly strong feedback from students. One student commented: "The medicine was interesting and the mock ward added to the experience."

Foxhills Year 10 students also visited during the summer term, exploring nine subject pathways across the college.

Each taster day followed the structure of a real JLC timetable, giving visiting students an accurate sense of college life rather than a scripted version of it.

What did the Forrester Boyd work placement programme deliver for JLC students?

Two JLC students, Harry Collins and Oliver Abbott, secured work experience placements with Forrester Boyd, a chartered accountancy firm based in Scunthorpe, following a structured careers programme that ran across the year.

The programme moved students through CV workshops, cover letter coaching, staff presentations, and mock interviews delivered by Forrester Boyd staff, before three students were shortlisted for a final competitive interview. Harry and Oliver were both offered placements: one in Summer 2026 and the second during October half term.

JLC Finance Manager Mike Hall, who previously worked at Forrester Boyd before joining the college, delivered presentations as part of the programme. He reflected on the outcome: "I am incredibly proud of how our students conducted themselves throughout and very grateful to Forrester Boyd for offering two students work experience placements."

The programme is an example of what JLC's employer engagement looks like in practice: not a general careers talk, but a structured competition that mirrors a real application process and ends with a genuine professional opportunity.

What alumni news came out of JLC this summer?

Lottie Thompson, a former JLC Fine Art student, graduated from the University of Oxford with a First Class Bachelor of Fine Art (Honours) in 2026. She studied at JLC between 2020 and 2023, combining A Levels with a Foundation Diploma, and credits the college's teaching team and student support with giving her the preparation to apply successfully to one of the most competitive art programmes in the world.

She described her time at Oxford as: "Three years at Hogwarts. Painting and making and reading as much as I could ever want."

And of JLC: "An excellent team of teachers, technicians and student support allowed me to become a successful applicant to Oxford University."

Lottie's story sits alongside a consistent track record. JLC's Class of 2025, which left the college after Results Day in August 2025, saw 8 in 10 students achieve A to C grades or equivalent*, with 48% achieving high grades at A Level and 77% at BTEC or CTEC. Of those who applied to Oxford through the Aspire programme, 100% achieved the qualifications needed to progress to their chosen destination. Among them, Filip Dolejan achieved A* in Maths, Chemistry and Biology and went on to study Physics at Oxford. 

Principal Leon Riley said of the Class of 2025: "Their resilience, ambition and determination, combined with the dedication and expertise of our exceptional staff, have delivered outcomes that open doors to exciting futures."

What is coming next for the JLC community?

The biggest development for the year ahead is the opening of John Leggott Wolds, a new post-16 centre at Caistor Yarborough Academy, which opens in September 2026. The partnership between JLC and Caistor Yarborough Academy will bring specialist sixth form education to students in Caistor and the surrounding villages, with a strong focus on employer connections and work-based experience built into every pathway.

Principal Leon Riley described the new centre as: "Our commitment to accessibility, academic excellence and student success."

For current Year 1 students returning in September 2026, second year brings UCAS deadlines, personal statement work, mock exams, and the decisions that shape what comes next. JLC's Aspire team, UCAS support staff, and pastoral network will be in place to support every student through that process.

For Year 2 students who finished their A Levels and T-Level courses, results day is on 13th August 2026. 

Enrolment for the new cohort takes place on 20th and 21st August 2026. 

FAQ Section

When did Year 1 students at JLC finish for summer 2026?

Year 1 students at John Leggott College finished on Thursday 9th July 2026. Year 2 students completed their examinations earlier in the summer term.

What were JLC's A Level results for the Class of 2025?

8 in 10 students achieved A* to C grades or equivalent. 48% of A Level students achieved high grades, and 77% of BTEC and CTEC students achieved high grades. 329 learners achieved an A* or equivalent, and 75 students achieved three A or A* grades across their subjects.

When is JLC enrolment for September 2026 entry?

Enrolment for the 2026-27 academic year takes place on 20th and 21st August 2026. Students should attend at their designated appointment time and bring their GCSE results. Contact admissions@leggott.ac.uk if you need to rearrange.